Black holes cook themselves food, astronomers found out

Astronomers conducted a key study, which showed that the most massive black holes in the Universe can prepare food for themselves. In the process of observing seven, galaxies with the help of the X -ray telescope “Chandra” and the optical telescope VLT in Chile, new evidence was obtained that outbreaks of black holes can cool the gas necessary for their own nutrition and further growth.

Image source: NASA

As you know, massive galaxies in accumulation centers contain huge black holes that absorb dust and gas in the accretion disk, which leads to the release of energy from their poles in the form of jets. Previously, a model was presented, which assumed the presence of feedback between energy emissions and the flow of gas into the black hole. According to this model, jets and other intensive radiation from the black hole (from the central overheated area of ​​the accretion disk) discard dust and gas from the center of the galaxy and even far beyond its limits.

Observations showed that a feedback power model has the right to life. The picture above shows two accumulations of galaxies from the seven studied: on the left – Perseus, on the right – a centaur. Violet streams are an X -ray emergency radiation emanating from black holes (light from the threads of overheated gas). Pink-red threads on the image were obtained by a very large telescope in chili in optical and infrared ranges. These threads depict warm (cooling) gas.

The analysis of the data helped to tie the threads of hot and cold gases, showing that their brightness and architecture are interconnected. A powerful radiation flying out of black holes causes turbulence in the surrounding gas, forces it to cool, and then this gas returns to black holes in the form of new portions of power. And so in a circle. Moreover, the discovery gave a new understanding that this mechanism is important not only for black holes, but also to launch the process of birth of new stars in galaxies.

The achieved progress has become possible thanks to innovative technology, which isolates hot threads in X -ray pictures of Chandra from other structures, including large cavities in hot gas, created by jets of black hole.

Finally, the discovered relationship between hot and cold threads shows an amazing resemblance to the one that was found in the tails of the Meduz Galaxy. Behind such galaxies, huge gas -pale tails stretch as they pass through the space. This similarity reveals an unexpected cosmic connection between two objects and implies that a similar process occurs in these objects.